Now we can add John Krasinski and another unnamed actor with a DC Comics background to the race, along with three rumored candidates for another role in the film.

Beginning a month ago, various sources and outlets began sharing shortlists and reports for talent Marvel Studios and writer-director James Gunn were considering for the role of Peter Quill. Quill, who becomes Star-Lord, is the leader of the Guardians and seems to be the first character Marvel wishes to cast before building a supporting roster around him.

Multiple actors signed test deals with the studio and since then, additional reports have knocked names off the list and continue to add more to it, comparable to the frenzy around the casting of Steve Rogers/Captain America a few years back.

According CBM who claim to have an inside source, John Krasinski (The Office) is now a contender for the role, joining a list which includes Joel Edgerton, Jack Huston, Jim Sturgess, Lee Pace, Eddie Redmayne, Garrett Hedlund, James Marsden, Sullivan Stapleton, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zachary Levi.

Krasinksi of course, was a top contender to play Captain America but the fan response to the rumors at the time was mixed at best. His wife, Emily Blunt almost had a few roles within the franchise, dropping the Black Widow part due to scheduling and turning down an offer to play Peggy Carter, but she hopes to one day join it. If Krasinksi does land the part, perhaps Blunt can play Gamora (far right in the image below).

Also on the apparently-not-short shortlist according to Moviehole is someone who’s played Superman before. That means either Brandon Routh (Superman Returns) or Tom Welling (Smallville) read for the role as well.

Hearing – from someone that recently worked with him – a former Superman may have tested for “Guardians of the Galaxy”, too. Huge shortlist!

Can’t get enough rumors? CBM is also reporting from their source what may be our first candidates for another role in the film, Drax the Destroyer (far left in the above image). They list Isaiah Mustafa (center in the below image), Brian Patrick Wade (left) and Dave Bautista (right) as being in the running.

Isaiah Mustafa is best known for his popular Old Spice commercials and for being a Marvel fanboy himself, previously gunning for the role of Luke Cage and even working a few gigs for the company, including an appearance in a Marvel.com video and working the red carpet for the Thor premiere.

Bautista, from WWE fame, is growing his profile as an action star and starred in The Man with the Iron Fists last year. Wade has done smaller stints in a variety of television series, including The Big Bang Theory and Generation Kill.

Look for plenty of additional news items regarding Guardians of the Galaxy in the coming months, as we’re only just beginning to see Marvel attempt to cast a large roster of characters for the epic space opera.

Iron Man 3 releases May 3, 2013, Thor: The Dark World on November 8, 2013, Captain America: The Winter Soldier on April 4, 2014, Guardians of the Galaxy on August 1, 2014, The Avengers 2 on May 1, 2015 and Ant-Man on November 6, 2015.